txbound

hi

can anyone give me an idea about how much time i should allow for document processing for first time validation of an immigration visa at JFK? due to my medical nearly running out, i have to make an unscheduled trip to the US and need to get back to the UK as soon as possible so i can say goodbye to my folks before i emigrate. should i expect to be held for more than 4 hours? I will re enter the US at LA in a couple of months time.

i have a marriage based visa and final destination is dallas texas.

i can't find anything on the wiki, articles or forum pages, but apologies if i have missed something.

thanks for your help
John

fatbrit

K1, K3, IR1 or CR1?

Rete

Processing at JFK could take as little as 10 minutes or as long as 4 hours. A lot depends on the number of people before you in the processing line. However, the last person through JFK from the UK was this week and they were approximately 90 minutes going through.

Why do you have to activate the visa now because of your medical. What does the medical have to do with anything?

Rete

It doesn't matter which it is.

txbound

thanks for the quick feedback everyone. the reason is that my medical was done on 25th june last year, so the visa is reflecting that (so i don't have to go for another medical before emigrating). I don't actually arrive in LA until the 2nd July due to travelling. Sounds like it's a bit of pot luck in terms of how many people are in front of you in the line. I'm looking at Boston too, thinking it may not be as busy as JFK - still as expensive though - nothing less than £1k for a day return ;-(
will feedback how long it takes on this thread once i get it
thanks again
J

Rete

Why do you think you would need to have another medical? I'm confused by your misconceptions of the process. The medical was for the issuance of the visa and only needed to be valid for the time up til you interviewed. It does not matter if it is more than a year old at the time you enter the US for the first time. The only thing that has a timeline on it at this point is the visa itself.

Boston, JFK, LA, Houston, are all major cities and will always have people headed for secondary. If you want a flash through then come to the US through Dublin where you will be inspected before you board the plane.

fatbrit

It does if s/he turns around and leaves!

fatbrit

Yet you don't think it's important to find out which visa s/he's on!

Rete

Only if it was a K-1. K-3 can leave immediately as can CR-1/LP-1's. They said a marriage-based visa and since K-1 is not marriage-based ... well

Rete

The same holds true for K-1, K-3, CR-1/LP-1. The medical need only be valid at the time of the interview and issuance of the visa itself.

fatbrit

I really think it's best to start at the beginning here. Like....what visa! Making assumptions could prove fatal.

Rete

Oh, TX

One very very important thing if your wife is not in the US already but living in the UK or elsewhere outside of the US, you cannot activate the visa. She must already be here in the US or accompanying you at the time you activate the visa.

meauxna

John, I read your post to say you have an Immigrant Visa. If so, the part about your sponsor entering with or ahead of you is very important.

It's funny, just the other day I was re-reading my post like yours, from however many years ago. Much doom and gloom, 'you'll need more than 3 hours for the connection!' etc and the whole thing took 15 minutes.
However, you just never know how many people will be in line (in Secondary) ahead of you.
Here is an article describing the process and what you can expect:
Arriving In America: Navigating the POE Port Of Entry (POE)

I believe the medical needs to be valid up to the POE. Just like the I-864 is only finally put in force when the immigrant becomes a Permanent Resident (at the POE).

Rete

Completely disagree with this belief. The medical is for the issuance of the visa which was done by the US Consulate. Why would it need to be valid at the time of the entry? How is the agent at the POE to know this? Has anyone had their medicals scanned for an expiration date? Not in the 11 odd years I've been hanging around. Just as the police clearance need only be valid at the time of the interview at the US Consulate, there is nothing that says it has to be valid at the time of the entry. With the medical, if the beneficiary contracted a STD after the initial medical and before the US Consulate interview, it would not affect the results of the medical given to the US Consulate since the disease was not there at the time of the medical.

meauxna

USCIS search is down this morning, but this is from the US Embassy in Austria.

Validity of Medical Examination Results

Maximum validity of medical examination results is one year with at least 6 months' validity required on the day of visa issuance. If the exam has less than 6 months' validity, the visa is limited to the validity of the examination results.

It's just something nagging in the back of my mind. The requirements for AOS are a little bit different; they make an exception for applicants when the case is not adjudicated before the medical expires (presume because it's the Service's fault, not the applicant's).